The present invention relates to a device for and method of elevating liquids.
Devices of the above mentioned general type are known in the art. The devices for elevating liquids through a discharge pipe with the utilization of solar or wind energy are disclosed in the U.S. Pats. Nos. 4,519,749 and 4,583,918, while the pipes for elevation of doses of liquids are disclosed in the U.S. Pats. Nos. 4,527,956 and 4,671,741. The devices disclosed in the U.S. Pats. Nos. 4,519,749 and 4,583,918 include a container- heat exchanger, an element which forms a dose of liquid, a discharge pipe, one or two liquid valves, and air taking diffuser. The operation of these devices is based on pushing from below upwardly of the formed doses of liquid through the discharge pipe by an expanding air during its heating in the heat exchanger. The elevation of the doses of liquid which in the discharge pipe assume the shape of liquid plugs or small columns, can be performed with the aid of the special pipes, for example the pipe disclosed in the U.S. Pat. No. 4,527,956. The inner space of this pipe is filled, with some interspaces, with a plurality of discs which are perforated. The diameter of perforations in the discs, the distance between the discs, and the value of forces of molecular interaction between the liquid and of the material of the discs produce such excessive capillary pressure that the plug of liquid in the vertical pipe is not dispersed and is not lowered under the action of gravity.
The pipe disclosed in the U.S. Pat. No. 4,671,741 also provides elevation of separate doses of liquid. Under the action of pressure difference, a dose of liquid is pumped from a lower container into an upper container through a pair of pipes, one of which insures the pumping of liquid while the other of which insures equalization of gas pressure in the lower and upper containers after pumping the dose of liquid from the lower to the upper level.
The devices disclosed in the U.S. Pats. Nos. 4,519,749 and 4,583,918 have some disadvantages, which include a complicated construction because of the use of liquid valves, consumption of a part of received energy for activating of the liquid valves, time spent for blowing through of the heat exchanger, limited coefficient of thermal expansion of gaseous working medium (air) and therefore use of the heat exchanger having a large volume which can exceed 10 times the volume of other parts in the event of 30.degree. C. range (between 30.degree. C. and 60.degree. C.) of the thermodynamic cycle of operation of the device, limitation of the temperature coefficient of change in pressure of working medium by the value which is determined by the dependency of gas pressure from its temperature, absence of interrelationship between the time of running of phases of the thermodynamic cycle and intensity of wind action, and finally the necessity of having simultaneously two independent sources of energy , namely wind energy and thermal energy.
The disadvantages of the pipe disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,527,956 include a relatively high resistance to flow of of liquid in the pipe because of the obstacles formed by the discs in the pipe, as well as maintenance expenses for cleaning dirt in the perforations of the discs and between the discs.